Diosia, Part Eight

As she was taken away from the prison, she and the Duchess walked up a set of cramped stairs and came out to a luxurious mansion.

Flanked by the lady's bodyguards, the two of them made their way through it. There were various paintings on the walls, each one depicting what looked like various historical figures.

All of which were, surprisingly, elves.

[I guess Cait did say that this place belonged to the elves before... Guess they haven't cleaned out the decorations yet.]

They went deeper and deeper into the lavish building, making their way up another set of stairs and walking all the way to the end of the hall, where a single door remained on the left next to an open window that let the sun wash over the corridor.

Here, the Duchess went in and Liri walked behind her. The two guards remained outside.

They ended up in a regular bedroom with one large bed at the center, some drawers next to it, and a huge closet with a tall mirror at its back. In addition, there was a desk to the left with a few stacks of papers and a pen, where Liri guessed the Duchess got most of her work done.

She went over there and sat down, turning the chair toward Liri.

"Very well then, Liri, care to let me know why you are actually here?"

That question caught Liri off-guard.

"Huh?"

"Ah, come on," the Duchess replied, cackling. "I can hardly imagine someone belonging to a race of people that have never been seen before came to fight on behalf of elves for money. I only went along with that story so I could get you here and we could talk in a more intimate space. So, tell me, Liri, what is it you want?"

[... Crap.]

Once again, Liri considered starting a fight. Without knowing why she couldn't use her Mantras, or whether she could survive a gunshot at this point, it was difficult to make that decision.

So, she decided the best thing to do would be to stall for time until a better choice appeared before her.

Entertaining the Duchess's request, Liri replied:

"... I heard about injustices the elves of this town were currently going through. I wanted to see if I could help somehow. That's why I'm here."

"Ah... Is that it?" The Duchess asked, tilting her head. "It was some sense of altruism that brought you here? Heh," she shook her head with a smile. "Unfortunately, the situation here is far too dire to be helped."

[Unfortunately?]

"I had to try," Liri said, nearly through gritted teeth.

"And you have," the Duchess nodded. "And you got caught. And now, if anyone sees you outside this office, you may get gunned down. That's an unfortunate set of circumstances."

Noticing a minor implication there, Liri asked:

"Does that mean you're not going to gun me down here?"

"Why would I?" The Duchess asked. "You are no elf, darling. You are no drasen either. And, I personally don't care about humanity's petty grudges. If it was up to me, I would let you go right now with a warning not to come back. A warning not to let your naivety take hold of you in the future, as it clearly did so this time. Unfortunately," she leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs, "it is not up to me."

"Who is it up to, then?"

"The God-King of humanity," she answered. "I will send him a letter regarding your presence and... circumstances. He will decide what should be done with you himself. I have to because, well, if an Inquisitor sees you and lets him know before I do about your presence, I will be killed. It is as simple as that."

This conversation was perplexing, to say the least.

It seemed that this woman, the Duchess, was also unaware of the ven's existence, just like the elves and drasen were. However, she was human. Up until now, Liri had simply assumed that all humans hated the ven and wanted them killed, but the Duchess made it clear just now that not all humans knew of her kind's presence. If she was being truthful, of course, but Liri couldn't see a reason why she would lie about that.

It didn't make her grudge against them lessen in intensity, but it did make her wonder how and why that attack on her village happened. At the very least, *some* people had to have mixed feelings about it.

There were clearly more questions that needed answering before Liri could say she truly understood what was happening in this world.

Noting that the woman wasn't entirely hostile, she decided to ask about something.

The reason why she couldn't use her Mantras.

"I... Um, I feel kinda strange, by the way," she said. "Is... is there anything here that's making that happen? I feel weaker."

The Duchess considered that question for a bit before, suddenly, her eyes widened. And, she smiled.

"Well... You're more like an elf than I thought. Yes, there is something here that would have that effect. I won't tell you what, just in case you're still having thoughts of harming me as I'm sure must have gone through your mind at some point, but, yes. Something is certainly having that effect. But, don't worry, that *thing* is just something I keep to prevent elves, Inquisitors, and... I guess, you, now, from using your abilities on me. If you were to, let's say, escape and get into a fight with an Inquisitor, they will not have what's making you feel this way. So, don't worry," she winked. "You'll be fine."

"And, you're just telling me that? Really?"

"Well," she replied with a shrug, "I have no grudge against you. The only person who matters to me IS me. In fact, here, just to solidify this little unofficial pact of non-aggression we have going on, I'll tell you this. The same power that gives elves and humans access to their incredible abilities can also take it away. For whatever reason, the God-King is an exception, but no one else, including you apparently, is. You should be careful about the ground you walk on."

It was strange hearing someone being so upfront about these things, but, well, at least Liri had an answer now.

She still had questions, of course. How did she acquire this *thing*? Why couldn't the Inquisitors use it? Why didn't Caitlyn know about it? But, she decided to hold off on that stuff for now.

As the Duchess said, they had an unofficial truce going. She didn't want to ruin it.

"... What are you going to do with me in the meantime?" Liri asked.

"Well, here's what I have in mind," The Duchess said, grinning. "Get those rags off you. I'm hiring you as my maid, darling. Temporarily, of course, but with the potential for permanence depending on what the God-King decides."

Liri blinked.

"Are you serious?"

"Of course! I have a weakness for cute maids. Come on, out of those clothes!"

At that moment, Liri swallowed.

[Wait...]

She worried then that if the Duchess found out about *that* part of her, this apparent goodwill she had for some reason would go away.

"Um... Could I get-"

"Nope, out of those clothes. Now," the Duchess stated firmly. "Your new mistress gave you an order, Liri. Don't keep me waiting."

Inhaling sharply, Liri nodded.

[... I hope she doesn't just shoot me down as soon as she sees it.]

Reluctantly, she did as the woman asked.

And, she saw how the woman's eyes widened as soon as her rags hit the floor.

"..."

She blinked.

Then, a reaction Liri hadn't expected came out of her. She grinned again.

"Oh my~"

[Uh... What's happening?]

"Is that... What exactly are your kind like, Liri?" She asked.

"I... We have both," Liri explained. "The other is, uhm, under my... AGH!"

"Oh wow."

A warm hand wrapped around her shaft and lifted it up. The Duchess looked under it and found what Liri was talking about.

She didn't take her hand off, though.

"You are more interesting than I initially believed," the woman said.

Because she kept that hand there, Liri's body reacted.

She couldn't help it. If she could will her dick to remain flaccid, she would have. But, that thing had a mind of its own and it liked this situation.

So, it stiffened and the Duchess's eyes widened again.

She licked her lips.

Then, she stood up and walked to the door, opening it to speak to the two guards standing there.

"Guards," the Duchess said all of a sudden. "Could you step away for a moment? I'm afraid I need to have a more private conversation with my cute, new maid."

[Wait, what?]

Just like that, the two humans left, and Liri's cock twitched with an appreciation for that fact.